


All's Well That Ends Well

by Merkey666



Series: Bandit au [3]
Category: Fall Out Boy, My Chemical Romance, Panic! at the Disco
Genre: Adoption, Baby Shower?, Christmas Time, Domestic Fluff, Grand Finale, Happy Ending, Kinda, M/M, Married Life, Party, Sappy, i guess
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-25
Updated: 2017-12-25
Packaged: 2019-02-22 16:45:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,228
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13171032
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Merkey666/pseuds/Merkey666
Summary: The day comes when Bandit can move in. This is the sappiest thing I have ever written, and that's saying a lot.





	All's Well That Ends Well

**Author's Note:**

> Holy shit this is two days late but shhhhh I'll just change the day, no one will notice :)
> 
> Alright this whole thing is done thank god. Maybe I'll keep writing, maybe not who knows ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯
> 
> Anyway, enjoy and let me know what you think!

When the initial shock began to ware off, a feeling Frank had doubted would ever come over him, he was at a loss for things to do. Gerard seemed a little less confused with the world, as he was still able to do basic tasks, but there were still moments where he found himself frozen with a stupidly ecstatic smile stuck on his face. Frank laid himself down across a couple of parallel chairs and stayed in that position until Gerard chucked his feet off so he could sit. Frank couldn’t even fathom why Gerard’s first reaction to hearing the news that he was going to be a father was to eat corn flakes, but Frank didn’t bothered to think about it. The sheets of music were so far removed from their mindsets that there was just no computing it anymore. 

Gerard nearly inhaled the milk in his bowl when he suddenly remembered something that hadn’t come across his mind since he’d heard the news.

“Shit, we need to tell Mikey!” he gasped, throwing himself into the hallway with much more energy than someone as sleep deprived as he should’ve been able to exert. Frank giggled from upon his chairs as he watched Gerard repeated misdial Mikey’s number in his hurry. Luckily, on the fifth time he got it wrong, Mikey just so happened to call him. Gerard picked up the phone as fast as he could.

“YES?” he practically screamed. Mikey took a second to un-recoil himself from the blast he just received.

“Ah. You’re awake,” he said apathetically. “Good morning to you too, Gerard.” Gerard put one hand on his hip and made a face at the wall. Count on Mikey to make Gerard relive his childhood. 

“So, you and Frank are attempting to adopt?! That’s amazing and totally crazy, Gee! I’m sorta worried about the band-” Gerard’s face fell. “But on the other hand- how great will that be? I’ll have a niece or nephew! I’m gonna be an uncle! I’m going to be the best uncle,” Mikey said matter-of-factly. 

“Niece.”

“Huh?” 

“Niece. She’s your niece. Also, you’re her only uncle, Mikey. How can you be the b-”

“YOU GOT APPROVED? YOU GUYS HAVE A KID?!” Frank heard that one through the phone. He also heard Gerard burst out laughing, probably letting his head fall back and letting his crazy morning hair fall down his back. His smile, his watery eyes, his laugh that seemed endless. 

“Holy shit!” Mikey hissed, letting it all sink in. “Okay, so I can’t fucking deal with this over the phone thing, so I’m going to be there in about… twenty minutes, and you’re going to explain to me just how in the fuck Frank managed to keep his FAT TRAP shut for however long this took to happen. I can’t imagine it was quick and painless.”

“It certainly was not. And if you do intend to come over, bring food. All we have are fucking cornflakes. And yeah, I do love cornflakes, but only so many,” Gerard bargained. Frank snorted from the kitchen. 

“Got it. No cornflakes. Deal.” From the background, Gerard could hear a sleepy “Where’re you going? Can I come?” and he tried not to smile as best he could. Mikey held the phone away from his mouth as he replied, and Gerard prayed that he was not telling Pete anything, like they’d agreed. If he had, he would know very soon. 

“Can I bring Pete? If Frank can threaten him in person, I think the desired effect will come much easier.” Gerard groaned into the phone, but relented. The word would get out eventually, even if his brother wasn’t boning the world’s biggest blabbermouth. 

“Fine. I think Frank will enjoy threatening him, regardless of the topic. Just don’t forget the food or else I am one-hundred percent eating your boyfriend,” Gerard said extra loud, just for Pete to hear. Pete made a screeching sound in reply. 

“I’m glad you two are getting along,” MIkey huffed. Gerard snickered and hung up before things could get any weirder. With the Ways, it always could. 

~

Gerard wandered back over to the dining room, where he sat point blank on a chair. He couldn’t really think of anything at the moment. His brain was put on pause and his body was following in suit. Frank was bubbling around the kitchen, putting things on shelves that they didn’t exactly belong on, turning the sink on randomly, the list went on. All he knew was he was happy, happier than he’d been in a long time, and he was content to sit with that for a little while. 

People deal with shock in a lot of different ways, whether it be silence, panic attacks, jumping up and down and screaming, or anything else of the like. As for the two of them, silence was the most preferable method of coping. One couldn't think of anything at all, like his brain was out on pause and he couldn't find the play button. Gerard bobbed his head to an imaginary song, making eye contact with the surface of the table. The other man couldn't stop his brain from working. So many thoughts raced through one ear and out the other. He couldn't capture any thought to focus on, so he settled down onto the warm platform of hysteria. 

It took a long time for either of them to get a single word out. 

“I should probably put clothes on if Mikey’s coming over,” Gerard whispered. Frank whirled around and shuffled over. He put his head on top of Gerard’s and smiled broadly, soaking up the long awaited calmness in the air. How his entire world had gone from calamity to calm in under two minutes had felt like an earthquake. But it was over, and he couldn’t think about anything else. 

“You can do whatever you want,” Frank smiled into his hair. He could feel Gerard shifting uneasily underneath him, worming around like there was still something toying with him. Gerard stood up quickly, knocking into Frank’s chin and making quite a ruckus, and twisted around.

“Are you sure you don’t mind me writing? I just feel like you should be mad.” Frank stared at him incredulously. 

“Mad? Have I ever been mad at you for writing music before? Gee, my job is to play guitar in a band, coincidentally, the same band you write music for. How would that make me mad? So, without that in the way, the only thing could be problematic is the timing, and I'm getting the feeling you're going to be quite busy over the next few months, maybe years. So no, I'm not mad. And you don't get to be upset with yourself, m’kay? Good,” Frank replied. Gerard took a deep breath through his nose and nodded. 

“I'm sorry that I can't get myself together. I'm just so-”

“WHAT’S UP, FUCKERS!” Pete screeched as he walked through the previously thought to have been locked front door, escorted by Mikey. Gerard wiped his eyes and turned away as Frank greeted his guests. Both Mikey and Pete were all over Frank.

“You two have the worst timing ever,” Frank mumbled to no one in particular. Pete shrugged it off, but Mikey caught on. He swooped in and captured Gerard in a hug. Gerard resisted the effort to be swept away, but Mikey was persistent.

“I’m so proud of you,” he whispered. Gerard blushed profusely and tried to pry Mikey off of him like a teenager embarrassed by their parent. Mikey shook him a little, and before long, Gerard’s bubbly laugh rang out. Frank turned around from jesting with Pete and cracked a smile at the two brothers. Family, he thought with a smile on his face and in his mind. 

“So,” Pete spoke up. “What's her name?” Mikey jumped at the question and pulled Gerard back towards the center of the room. He slammed Gerard onto a chair and then slammed himself down right next to him. 

“Her name is Bandit,” Frank said slowly. Pete looked like he was taking internal notes, something Frank didn't miss. 

“That's appropriate,” Pete muttered. Mikey kicked him under the table. Pete shrugged back at him, because, well, it was. 

“So… What else?” Mikey asked. Frank didn't know what to say, since he didn't know what they wanted. Mikey looked expectantly from Frank to Gerard, and with that lovely sibling bond in place, Gerard began to rant out all the answers Mikey was dying to know. Pete tried to follow on, but the Ways were just so incomprehensible that all context was out of the picture. Frank understood that by then. 

Midway through his long ass one-way conversation, Gerard’s mind went abruptly blank. He closed his mouth and tried to remember his sentence. 

“Mikey!” he gasped. “FOOD! Did you bring food?” Pete looked from Gerard to Mikey, who each had a unique look on their face. Mikey pulled out his phone, not breaking eye contact with his brother, and dialed a number on his phone. Gerard narrowed his eyes as the line rang. 

“Hi, yes,” Mikey said as a voice could vaguely be heard on the other end. “Yeah, I’d like to order one large cheese pizza. Drop off, please.” Pete was cracking up, Frank had his face in his hands and Gerard was trying desperately to hold back his laugh. Mikey, with no regards for anyone else, completed the order and hung up his phone smoothly.

“You were saying?” he asked. Gerard snorted and shook his head. “Hey, it’s better than nothing.” Gerard silently agreed. For possibly the first time in Frank’s entire life, he saw Pete looking just as baffled as he was. Maybe it was the sleep deprivation that was making life feel like a never ending acid trip, or maybe it was just how uniquely strange his husband was. Both Frank, and Pete too, probably, were so close to the Ways that one had to imagine they had gotten used to the weirdness that flourished around them but, no, they had not. And both strongly doubted they ever would. 

“Bathroom?” Mikey asked, midway through a conversation that was so far off base that it could’ve been a shit post. 

“Down the hallway, last door on the left,” Gerard replied. Mikey slipped out without another word, and listened as his brother joined right back into the conversation, as happy as ever. It wasn’t that long ago that the band had hit its all time low, and Mikey was happy that Gerard and Frank were capable of such a remarkable comeback. It had been a struggle for him, but he too had made it out alive. 

Mikey paused in front of a door and pushed it open. Oops, he thought. Wrong one. He was about to shut the door when he spied something inside that made him think that things weren’t as pristine as he imagined. On the floor of the bedroom that he’d accidentally entered, was a mess of yellow note-taking paper. They were strewn about like they’d been dumped there, and the handwriting on it looked rash and feverish. He checked the hallway to make sure no one was watching him, before he disappeared into the room and shut the door behind him. 

***

Gerard hadn’t even began to notice how lengthy Mikey’s absence had become, before he strode right back in with an odd look on his face. Pete and Frank kept up the conversation without so much as a look in his direction, but that sibling connection worked its magic and Gerard caught right on. He pleasantly excused himself from the table and wandered over to Mikey. 

Mikey made a little gesture with his head and pulled Gerard even farther away from the others, and into the hallway. That was around when Gerard realized something must’ve been wrong.

“You’re writing again?” Mikey accused. Gerard was right: Part 1. “I don’t mean to sound discouraging, but I saw your notes when I was walking-” Mikey sighed. “Gee?” Gerard was right: Part 2. 

Gerard didn’t miss a beat. “Yes, I am. But, me and Frank talked it through together and we made a truce of some sort. I’ll go slowly this time, as opposed to writing six thousand pieces and phrases and then scrambling to put them together as the due date approaches. I was only going to get the rest of the band involved when I got serious…” Gerard intoned. Mikey’s expression relaxed as Gerard spoke, but he still couldn’t shake the bad feeling he had over the whole ordeal. 

“Isn’t all of your writing serious?” he replied. 

“You know what I meant.” Gerard laughed briefly, and instantly Mikey’s disbelief hunkered away for another time. If Gerard was alright with it, and to an extension, Frank as well, then so would he. 

“Yeah-”

“Gee?” Frank butted in, peeking around the corner. “Hey, Laurie just emailed.” Mikey witnessed first-hand Gerard’s physique shift. He straightened up and clenched his jaw, a sign of worry that Mikey had noticed over the years. 

“Sorry, who’s Laurie?” Mikey asked. 

“Our social worker,” Gerard replied. “What did she say?” Frank looked a little dubious about saying anything near Mikey, which Mikey noticed, and ignored. 

“It’s about Bandit,” Frank eventually said. 

“Yeah, no shit,” Mikey cut in. Gerard elbowed him and pushed him aside. 

“Shut up, Mikey. This is for the grown ups. Frank-” Gerard honed his attention in on Frank. “What about Bandit?” Frank smiled.

“About when she can move in.” Gerard smiled broadly and pulled him into hug. Gerard nearly crumpled the moment he felt Frank’s arms around him. Frank looked up and for no reason, extended an arm for Mikey. Mikey shook his head, smiling, but Frank was too emotionally unstable to take no for an answer. He and Gerard collectively hobbled over as a until and dragged him into the hug. 

No one in the clump heard the doorbell ring, and no one heard the door open and shut, but everyone certainly heard Pete when he started screeching. 

“PIZZA’S HERE! Where the fuck did you guys-” he rounded the bend and paused. Frank pulled away first, wiping his leaking eyes and snorting at the look on Pete’s face. 

“God, I really do have the worst timing, don’t I?” Pete whispered. Gerard unlatched himself from Mikey and took two steps before clinging onto Frank once again. Mikey wrapped an arm around Pete’s shoulders. 

“Yes, god yes. You certainly do.” 

~

Frank passive-aggressively forced Mikey and Pete out of there house after the pizza was shared and eaten. Gerard didn’t want to be so rude as to kick his own brother out after finally spilling the news that he soon would have a kid, even if they’d already spoken about it, but Frank didn’t mind. Every time that Gerard mentioned Mikey as ‘their’ brother, Frank felt a little bit more modest and calm. 

It reminded him that he was married, not that he ever forgot, to one of his best friends, the love of his life, and how he felt unstoppable when that thought came to mind. He didn’t feel nearly cliche as Gerard told him he ought to when he talked about how they could overcome anything, because in sum, they could. The recording of the Black Parade was generally what Frank was referring to when he brought up the hardships, since that was one of the toughest ones to date. 2004 was the other most referenced time, only that one was worse for Gerard to talk about, understandably so. But Frank was there for him, and he’d grab his hand and squeeze until the lump in Gerard’s throat subsided. And then he’d look up at Frank and smile and they both could remember that things had gotten better, and a sense of tranquility fell over them. It was a little cliche, but it was true in that the world had fucked them, as it had to anyone else, and they fucked the world right back. And through it all, even when they hadn’t known if things would ever get better, they got through it. 

Frank smiled as he held Gerard’s hand. He wasn’t sure if he was happy or sad whenever he relived those memories, but he was of so glad he had them. The world was an awful place, and sometimes remembering just how awful it was makes what you have seem that much better. 

“Frank?” Gerard asked, snapping his fingers in front of his face. “Frank, wake up. We’re in Ikea, not a spa.” Frank jolted back into the present, panicky for just a second. His eyes focused and oh yeah, he was in Ikea. Right. 

“Yeah, sorry. Spaced out. You were saying?” Frank tripped over his own tongue as he tried to compensate for his lack of focus. 

“I said,” Gerard elongated the word for dramatic effect. He was clearly agitated. “Do we get a crib or a bed? She’s three, but some toddlers prefer one to the other, as we don’t know stuff like that about her.” Frank didn’t have the slightest idea. 

“Um… no fucking clue. She is still pretty little- hey! How about a crib that can turn into a bed! Man, we’re the cool parents already!” Frank joked. Gerard hated that Frank’s stupid quips made him laugh, but they did. Endlessly. 

“You’re so lame,” Gerard muttered, looking at the crate Frank was referencing. 

15 minutes and one crib-bed purchase later, Frank walked out of Ikea beaming and Gerard… not so much. While most of the experiences the two had had in the process of adopting were about waiting, and motivation, shopping was an entirely different ordeal. It was hell. 

Frank dragged Gerard to only a few stores, since Ikea made Gerard significantly less enthusiastic about shopping with Frank. Gerard’s lack of motivation wasn’t to be misconstrued as not caring, only that Frank was a generally exhausting person. The good news to Gerard was that all the stores were in one massive cluterfuck of a shopping center. Meaning there would be minimal driving parking, dragging stuff back to the car, etc. And that was the only good news.

Frank pulled out his notepad. “Here’s the game plan: I say we hit up-”

“Don’t say that. It makes you sound like you’re planning to rob it.”

“Who’s to say I’m not?” Gerard raised an eyebrow. “You’re such a party pooper. Anyway, we’re going to Babies ‘R Us, we can cross off Ikea, we already went there, then how about we go to Whole Foods or something? Do you think she’s a vegetarian?”

Gerard only had so much control left. “Frank…” he groaned.

“Sorry, only joking,” he paused. “What’s up? You look tired. Not regular, ‘I’m adopting a kid’ tired, like, extra tired. Wanna talk about it?”

Gerard leaned his head on Frank’s shoulder and sighed. “You’re right. I’m tired. I’m so fucking tired that I was to be put into a coma and not wake up for forty-seven years. I want to go home, light a nice fire, and fall asleep to the smell of pine. On the couch.”

“Oh, that reminds me! We need a tree! This is the least festive year we’ve had together,” Frank remarked.

“I’m aware. And I don’t care about that anymore, that’s how tired I am! Who needs a fucking tree? We don’t need to decorate? Bandit might try and eat a light or something anyway, and I don’t really need any more danger hazards. Halloween consisted of me sleeping in the basement, and I don’t even know what you were doing. It’s honestly a good thing we don’t celebrate Thanksgiving because that would’ve been a bust too. Plus, the mall is packed, there’s too many people for me to function. Someone could recognize us and then I’d have to talk to people, and that could only escalate, and the word might get out and then that’ll be chaos like Alt Press has never seen before, and there’s too many-”

“Gerard, Gerard, shhh. Calm down, it’ll be okay.” Frank wrapped his arms around Gerard and pulled him in, holding him light enough so he could breathe. He could hear Gerard’s breathe coming quicker and shorter, and his pulse rising, and he knew all too well what it would soon divulge into. He was surprised they’d lasted so long without a panic attack. 

“So fucking tired-”

“Is it okay if I hug you?” Frank asked, looking Gerard in the eyes. Gerard was swaying a little, and slowly but surely the panic faded from his eyes and they returned to hazel. Gerard, having finally registered the question, nodded.

“Okay,” Frank whispered, pulling him in close. Gerard buried his face in the crook of Frank’s neck and took deep breaths, letting the sound of Frank’s soft exhalations blur out all the other noises. “Here’s what we’ll do: I’ll take you home, okay? We can stay home today and go tomorrow, or I could go if you were okay with that. I could facetime you, or text you, if you wanted. You don’t have to make any decisions right now, I’ll do whatever floats your boat.”

“Can we just sit here for a few minutes?” Gerard whispered.

“Of course, Gee.” Frank pressed a kiss onto the side of Gerard’s head, rocking him gently. 

Eventually Gerard came back to reality, holding Frank’s left hand and running his fingers over the ring whenever he got nervous again. The walk to the car was not long, and soon they were within it, blasting the heat until they could feel the tips of their fingers again. Frank drove with one hand on the wheel, the other intertwined with Gerard’s. Christmas carols lulled from the radio. 

“It doesn’t feel like it’s been a year,” Gerard finally whispered. 

“Tell me about it. I think I’ve cried more this year than I have any other year in my life. Including when I was an infant.” 

Gerard chuckled in agreement. Light rain began to fall on their windshield. The car got very quiet. 

“Am I ready to be a dad?” Gerard asked, out of the blue. Before Frank could answer, he drove the car off the road and parked it. He unbuckled and turned to face Gerard, Christmas songs still playing from the radio. 

“Do you remember the time… it was at Warped Tour, and I made a bet with Gabe Saporta that I could jump… from the roof of my bus to the roof of his bus? And, well, I couldn’t and I broke my ankle and you called 911 before I even jumped, just because you knew? And then you rode in the ambulance with me and you didn’t laugh once, even when I expected you to. It was a dumbass move on my part, but you just sat next to me and played with my hair and smiled. Or how about the time that you got sick and cancelled a show because you knew it wouldn’t be any good for the fans. You didn’t want to, I remember that, but you did because you cared about them. And we played a makeup show and you fucking killed it. And let’s not forget how much you’ve cared for Mikey your entire life. After… after Paramour and that fiasco, you were the sweetest person I’d ever laid eyes on and I didn’t think I could fall any more in love with you but hooty hoo shit-for-brains, was I wrong or what? You’re so compassionate for every aspect of your life, and it’s like you’ve got three brains because with everything you’re doing, with your writing, and your drawing, and the band, and my 24/7 bullshit, and now Bandit, it doesn’t seem possible that all of this magic is coming from one person. Yet you’re still here, you’re still standing. The list of things you’ve survived goes on for ages, and honestly? You’re so ready to be a dad that you don’t even know it yet.” What started off slow sped up into a convulsion of compliments and ballads and Gerard wasn’t quite sure how to react to it all. He wiped a tear off of his face and looked down at his lap. 

“Thank you.”

“I mean it.” Gerard nodded and Frank buckled himself back up and pulled into traffic. Gerard stayed quiet for most of the ride, only occasionally sniffing or clearing his throat. He kept his hair in his face to hide his blush, even if it made him feel like a crushing teenager again. Frank turned the music up a little bit, and started humming along to whatever came on. 

They pulled into the driveway, ran out into the downpour, and then, laughing, they went inside. And holy shit, was the house a mess. They both realized that at about the same time, looked at each other, and smiled a little bit. 

“Do you want to deal with this now or later?” Frank asked.

“Later. I just want the couch right now…” Frank helped Gerard onto the couch, pulled a blanket over him, and cranked up the heat. He crouched down in front of Gerard when he was ready to head back out, this time in a raincoat.

“Do you want me to FaceTime you?” he asked gently. Gerard nodded in silence. “I’m gonna need some help bringing the tree in, but I think that’s the gist of it. Any suggestions before I go?”

“One.”

“Your wish is my command.”

“Kiss me.” Frank leaned in for a brief moment, pressing chapped lips onto chapped lips, listening to the rain outside and the buzz of the heaters within. Then they parted but moved no further from each other, enjoying the moment. 

“Okay,” Frank whispered. “Gotta go.” Gerard smiled and set his head down on a pillow, clutching his phone in his hand. Frank waved and then the door shut, and Gerard was alone in the house. Not for long, he thought, smiling to himself. 

~

Bandit’s room turned out nicely, with the combined effort of both the boys. Frank had his own creative input when it came to colour and design, and it didn’t always fit into Gerard’s ideas, which led to quite interesting compromises in the end. 

As usual, the tree was pressed in the corner of the living room by the fire place (not too close), and the large, squishy chairs. They’d held off on putting the star up on the top, because they hoped maybe Bandit would want to do it. 

Frank was having heavy bouts of deja vu by the time that the day came. Both he and his husband were rushing around the house, trying to make everything absolutely spotless, just like they had been for the past few days. Bringing in the tree had sparked the whole thing, what with all the pine needles scattered everywhere. 

Gerard was making sure Bandit’s room was just how he’d imagined it in his day dreams. He didn’t get enough sleep for regular dreams. 

Frank wasn’t even sure what he was doing, but he found himself in the middle of the dining room with a cup of milk and a knife roughly two minutes before his daughter was supposed to be arriving.

“What the fuck are you doing?” Gerard asked from the doorway where he’d appeared. Frank almost dropped his glass of milk, which then really would’ve been a coincidence. He came to his senses, looked at his hands, and sighed defeatedly.

“You know what? I’ve got no fucking clue what I’m doing,” he replied, dumping the milk out in the sink and putting the butter knife back in the drawer simultaneously. Frank watched his husband giggle over his shoulder as he wiped his hands off on a towel. It was a wonderful sight. Frank swirled around and set his still mildly damp hands on his hips, letting his feeble worries slip out of mind as he watched his husband try to cover up his smile. Oh, and there were all those feelings again. 

Gerard opened his mouth to say something, probably sappy, but was cut short by none other than the doorbell. Gerard looked from the door to Frank and tugged on his sleeves. Frank took longer to look back from the door, knowing the rest of his life was behind it. 

“Do you want to get it, or should I?” Gerard asked, biting his lip. Frank gulped.

“It was all my idea in the first place. I’ll do it,” he said firmly. Gerard followed quickly in his footsteps as he barrelled towards the front door. Frank took a deep breath as he set his hand on the door knob. Gerard put his warm hand on his back for support, and then Frank pulled the door open.

The little girl on the doorstep jumped and clung to the man standing in the doorway. Not ten feet behind them, was Laurie, smiling like she won the lottery. The man in front, tall and brunette, held out a hand for Frank. 

“Hi there, I’m Drew. We spoke on the phone a few days ago.” Frank shook his hand, not saying a word. He was still too awestruck that this was all happening. After such a long wait, things had happened awfully fast. The months of going up the roller coaster were over, and they were about to go tumbling down to the bottom. 

“Bandit, do you remember them?” Drew asked quietly, kneeling down next to her. She looked from Drew to Frank, with such a look of pure sass that Frank didn’t know how to understand, until she flung herself at him, wrapping her arms around his legs. Gerard crouched down and smiled at her calmly. She extended a hand and wrapped it around his shirt, pulling him in too. 

“Do I get to stay? Are you my daddies?” she asked with that childish slur that made the lump in Frank’s throat feel like a nuke. Gerard nodded at her, and could do nothing but sit back and watch as she started to jump up and down in excitement. She said nothing other than ‘yay’, although she did say it about a million times, and that was enough to satisfy Gerard for the time being. 

“Shall we take this inside?” Laurie asked politely. “Do you want to see your room, Bandit?” As heartwarming as it was to watch Bandit hug his leg like that, it didn’t even come close to the joy he felt when she let go and went streaming into the house. Frank bolted after her, picking her up gently as they dawned the stairs. She squealed in his arms, holding onto his sleeve tightly. Gerard watched them run and laugh, trying not to blubber. 

“This is why I love my job,” Laurie whispered. Gerard couldn’t deny it wasn’t a pretty sight, his eyeliner probably immensely smudged, sleep deprived and swaying, but that was part of the charm. Humans were loving creatures and to be able to give people the one thing they want most… Gerard understood why she loved her job. 

“I’m such a mess, I’m sorry,” Gerard murmured. Drew shrugged it off as he walked in with the two. Laurie put a hand on Gerard’s back and helped him in gently. 

“Sometimes crying is what makes it the most memorable, Gerard. Plus, I’ve seen worse, trust me. So much worse,” she enunciated. Gerard stifled a laugh as he took a seat on his couch. Drew set Bandit’s oddly small bag on the ground next to his feet. As much as Gerard had ‘enjoyed’ the last shopping trip he went on with Frank, he wouldn’t at all mind filling up his daughter’s drawers. He knew at that moment he was going to be that parent, the one that always spoils their kid. He’d always hated those parents, as both a child an adult. 

Drew got settled onto the other chair and clasped his hands together, taking in the room for a brief moment. He sighed and looked at Gerard with brown glimmering eyes, like the world was his and only his oyster. 

“Well, Gerard, I can’t tell you how happy it makes me to give Bandit a home, and to give the two of you a child you will love forever. Some couples have told me this was the most euphoric time of their life, but you never know. You should know, you’re now out of the woods yet though-” At that moment Frank and Bandit came tumbling into the room, giggle and squealing and shushing each other all at once. Frank set her down at the edge of the rug and whispered something in her ear. She nodded and headed straight for Gerard. 

She reached out wrapped her tiny arms around him tightly. “I wuv my room!” Gerard wrapped her up in a hug, his happiness bubbling over the top. Frank took a seat next to him, and found that he was running out of ways to process his emotions. The lines were edging closer to him, and he almost felt nauseated. It was possibly the first time in his life that he had felt a sore pain in his stomach and been so absolutely ecstatic at the same time. 

“Gerard, would you mind showing me Bandit’s room? Final inspection and all that stuff,” she inquired politely. 

“‘Course,” he replied, taking Bandit’s hand. It was she who led the two of them up the stairs, while Frank and Drew began to talk business downstairs. The staircase was pretty long, but it was carpeted, which counted for something. Hardwood floors didn’t seem like a great idea when combined with a toddler.

Bandit was breathing heavily, looking around at the high ceilings and house plants. She released Gerard in order to grab a handful of leaves and pull them off of the plant. Gerard didn't even care.

“This way,” he whispered, holding out his hand for her. She dropped the leaves instantly and took his hand, which was a little overly sweaty, if you asked him. There was a cream door at the end of the hallway, across from the playroom. Frank had meticulously decorated that room, and Gerard wondered when he’d realize that a girl of her age really wouldn’t need as much as they’d gotten for her. 

Bandit left Gerard behind, making a break for her room, and turned the knob without faltering. She was getting the hang of this pretty fast, thought Gerard. Her determination outweighed everything else in her way. She bounded into the mint colored room, and hopped up onto her bed-crib and hid under a blanket. Laurie looked around the room, absent of words. She looked at the tall, bolted window, that overlooked the street below, and smiled with pride.

“You’re already a fantastic parent, Gerard.”

“I hope you’re right.”

Laurie looked at him with skepticism. “Ah, there it is. Most parents start questioning their judgement at some point or another. Hey, I know you won’t take it from anyone else, so take it from me. You’ve come way too far to not be dedicated and caring to and for Bandit. Look at this room! You and Frank have put in so much effort for this little girl, and she’s going to grow up happy. She’s a rockstar already, and with the two of you?” Laurie lowered her voice. “She’s going to give the world hell, Gerard. Just you wait.” 

Laurie backed out of the room ominously. While he’d heard every word she said, he couldn’t get over the word ‘parent’ being used to describe himself. Bandit jumped out from under the blankets. 

“Boo!” 

Gerard jumped in surprise. “You scared me! I’m gonna getcha!” he laughed, feeling better already. He crept towards her, fingers at the ready. “Here come… the tickle bees!”

Bandit’s laughter could he heard through the whole house.

***

Laurie and Drew said their goodbyes, leaving with the promise of return for checkups and all that. And after that, time’s passage kicked into overdrive. Bandit did enjoy putting the star on the top of the tree, just as predicted. Not only that, she found Gerard’s breakfast concoction to be the “bestest thing ever”, which Frank couldn’t really agree with. That amount of sugar seemed unholy to him. So, the two of them ignored him in that regard. However, she did quite like Frank’s mother’s spaghetti recipe, which was good for many reasons, mainly being that Frank wasn’t sure how to introduce her to his relatives if she didn’t.

Bandit insisted on getting a “big kid bed” because she’d had one at the agency, so of course, being the giant pushover he was, Gerard sponsored a trip to the mall with her. Frank insisted that it could be a Christmas gift, but she was… very insistent. That trip went well by everyone’s standards, even with the discovery that she was quite the social butterfly and tried to talk to every person that they passed. Since it was the holiday season, that was quite a few people. But that gave Frank and Gerard an idea. 

Since all their friends would have to meet her at some point anyway, why not have a party? A Christmas party? Bandit thought this was a fantastic idea. It was late December at this point, so invites went out immediately, with pictures accompanying, hand drawn by Bandit. No surprise in that almost everyone agreed to come. The crowd couldn’t be too big, in fear that Bandit would get overstimulated, but it was large enough to keep her on her toes. 

Bandit persisted in helping the boys clean up before the party, putting clothes in her mini-hamper, and picking some of her toys up off of the floor. Frank and Gerard were less panicked about cleaning this time, being that it was only their friends that they awaited. All in all, Bandit fit right in. 

The doorbell rang. Frank looked at his watch. Bandit mirrored, despite not wearing a watch.

“Aren’t they not supposed to arrive for another half an hour?” he asked. Gerard stretched and shrugged, prodding the fire in the hearth. 

“If someone’s this early, then there’s no real surprise on who it is,” he laughed. Frank agreed. Bandit tugged on his pants. 

“Who? Who?” she whispered, staring at the door with wide, curious eyes. 

“Probably your Uncle Mikey,” Frank replied, kneeling down next to her.

“And Pete!” called Gerard from the living room.

“Beet!” Bandit repeated. 

“No,” Frank tried to keep a calm composure, despite Gerard cackling in the back. 

Like the crack of a whip, the front door flung open, courtesy of Pete, who had little more patience than Bandit. He stormed on it, vicarious, looking out over what must’ve seemed like, to him, a kingdom to conquer. Mikey appeared behind him, looking a little more bashful and someone sorry for the fright Pete must’ve given them all. But Bandit wasn’t phased in the slightest.

She struck an impressive stance on the spot. Pete watched with interest. She puffed up her chest and pointed at him dramatically. “BEET!” 

Gerard wheezed from the living room, and there was a clang from him dropping the prodder on the stone berth around the fireplace. Pete looked a little confused, but opted to just go with it.

“Correct! Tis I, Beet!” He knelt down on one knee and held out his hand for her. She shook it admirably. Mikey sidestepped his boyfriend and gave Frank a hug.

“Good to see you. Even more glad to see her, though!” Mikey pivoted on the spot and sat on his knees as he introduced himself, voice higher than Bandit’s. Gerard snorted at Frank being disregarded and joined him in the foyer. 

“This is how it’s going to be all night, bud,” Gerard chuckled.

“Yeah, I know.” He tuned in to hear Pete promising to teach Bandit how to play Call of Duty, and her mirroring with heaps of excitement. He pulled out his phone and trudged, on his knees, into the living room. The three of them, Pete, Mikey, and Bandit, collapsed on the beanbag, watching Pete play a mini version of the game on his phone. 

“He’s been here five minutes and he’s teaching her how to shoot people. My God,” Frank sighed, turned and sulking into the kitchen. 

“At least he’s not… Actually, no, I can’t think of a worse thing for him to be doing. PETE-” Gerard reared around and went to go scold. Frank just watched from where he stood.

While Frank was having a great time overhearing, the doorbell did ring once more, and he took it upon himself to answer it. A cold wind, combined with a few cold things on his face that could’ve been snowflakes, met him at the door. Oh, and there were people too. It took Frank a moment to get to that.

Standing presently in front of him was Brendon, who of course had brought along Ryan, since the two very genuinely inseparable. Frank wasn’t sure if he’d invited them or if he’d invited Mikey and Mikey had invited Pete and Pete had invited them. Regardless, they weren’t going anywhere now. So, Frank greeted them warmly and allowed them in, and he found, chatting behind them, were Patrick and Ray, two people who he had, in fact, invited. 

He gave the two of them hugs and shut the outside world out behind them. He followed up and found the four of them waiting in the entrance to the living room. Gerard was walking Bandit over, not that she had any problem doing that by herself. She practically skipped over, introduced herself, listed three facts about herself, and then demanded they do the same. It was… quite a sight. 

“Nice to meet you, Bandit,” said Patrick politely. She scrutinized him. “My name is Patrick. Three facts… hm. I play in a band. I’m married, but my wife isn’t here. Pete’s one of my best friends. Do those work?” Bandit turned to Pete and then back to Patrick. She pointed at Pete. 

“Beet’s your friend?”

Patrick made a face at ‘Beet’ but let it slide. “Best friend.”

“Okay.” 

Bandit didn’t find Ray or Ryan all that interesting, besides being mesmerized by Ray’s hair, and requesting that Ryan play dress up with her sometime, but as for Brendon…

“Whaddup, my name is Brendon. But you can call me Beebo. But only you, because you’re special. Got it?” Bandit looked a little take by surprise, but she nodded anyway. 

“My three facts better be good ones, so let’s see. See Ryan over there? He’s by boyfriend and he’s pretty good, so that counts as one. I’ve got a cat that he stole. He took it from a shelter and then-”

“We don’t need to hear the whole story again, Brendon,” Ryan cut in. Brendon stuck his tongue out at him, to which Bandit giggled. 

“And for my final fact, I’ll give you this: My name is Beebo, which starts with a B. Your name is Bandit, which also stars with a B. Therefore- and I don’t make the rules -okay, I am going to be a better friend than anyone else here. We’re cooler because our names start with B.”

“What about Beet?” Pete called out.

“Your real name is Pete, that doesn’t count!” Brendon countered. 

“You know what, only Brendon would teach my daughter to discriminate the first day he meets her. Only Brendon,” Gerard grumbled to Frank. 

“I’m just gonna sit back and watch the show, Gee. Whatever happens today, happens. I’m not gonna do shit in any manner. Too tired.” 

Gerard glared at him. “You’re terrible.” 

//

For the most part the party went well. Mikey ordered pizza again, which no one argued with. Bandit really enjoyed her first taste of America’s finest food, and soon everyone was nursing their own food baby because Mikey really did order way too fucking much pizza. 

It was getting later and Bandit was sprawled across Brendon and Ryan’s laps, giggling whenever Brendon pretended he was going to tickle her. (Gerard may have let it slip she was super ticklish.) Patrick was in another room on the phone with his wife, Ray was practically asleep in his chair, and Pete and Mikey were still in the bean bag, Mikey curled up on Pete and letting Pete run his fingers through his hair. 

Frank and Gerard had pulled in extra chairs from the kitchen and were alternating between talking shit and keeping the peace, which really was quite a combination. Gerard kept a watchful eye on Pete and Mikey, having absolutely zero trust in Pete. But he soon came to notice a thing or two. Then all of the sudden,

“Mikey needs to get his shit sorted out, or else Pete’s gonna fucking propose, and Mikey does not do well with surprises.”

“Is Pete even capable of conducting a surprise?” Frank asked, not missing a beat. 

“Good point.” He said what he said, but he didn’t really believe it. Pete was pretty sneaky for someone with so little self-control. Frank slipped his hand into Gerard’s like it was nothing, but it wasn’t really nothing, was it.

“Hey, speaking of love in general,” Gerard piped up, keeping his voice low so no one but Frank could hear him. “I love you. SO fucking much. Everything about you. I’m in love with it. And you, especially you. I’m so in love with you all the time, always, that sometimes I feel like I’m going to explode. So, this is me exploding. I love you so much and I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with you and Bandit and holy shit-” Frank pulled him in before he ran out of breath. 

As if on cue, Brendon screeched like a pterodactyl and covered Bandit’s eyes, seemingly not registering the fact that she’s three and literally couldn’t have cared less. 

That moment of laughter and confusion seemingly brought the party to a close. Patrick announced his departure, being that he had to pick his wife up from the airport, and Ryan and Brendon followed, but not before Bandit made them promise to come back to play dress up. Soon after, Ray left, and then it was just the happy family and the Hell Squad.

“As much as I enjoyed our Christmas time festivities, we should get going.” Mikey said, before turning and kneeling down in front of Bandit. “It’s Beet’s bedtime soon, and I’ve gotta bring him home. I promise we’ll be back soon, though. Okay?” 

Bandit nodded and as one final gift of knowledge, Mikey taught her how to fist-bump. After she gave both Mikey and Beet a solid fist-bump, Gerard shooed them out the door, and the house was quiet once more. 

“How come they’re always the first to come and the last to leave?” Frank asked Gerard as he passed. Gerard did not reply, and instead ushered Bandit upstairs for pajamas and bedtime. It was as struggle that night, since she was still so jacked up with energy and excitement. 

“C’mon B, it’s time for bed. Tomorrow’s waiting for you!” Gerard whispered, patting the bed next to him. Bandit reluctantly obliged and tucked herself into bed. Frank stood, watching over the scene in the doorway, smiling to his heart’s content. 

“Wiw I get to see Beet again?” she asked, yawning. 

“I can almost 100% promise you that you will. But not tonight, sweetie,” he replied. Bandit shut her eyes and Gerard leaned down and kissed her forehead. 

“Goodnight, B,” Frank whispered as he held the door open for Gerard. “I love you.”

Frank left the door open just a crack in case she needed them for any reason. Then, the two of them descended the stairs.

~

The fire was still going in the hearth. 

“We can’t just leave it. It might burn down the house while we’re sleeping,” Gerard reasoned as he laid down on the couch. Frank agreed and hunkered down next to him. “Plus, now we have extra reason to be careful. There’s… precious cargo.”

“True…” Frank trailed off. 

There were a few moments of sappy and wonderful silence, where the only sounds were the crackle of the fire and the pitter-patter of what Frank guessed was snow. The house was warm enough that they didn’t even need blankets as long as they lay close together, which wasn’t a problem. All was well.

Until… There was a noise. Gerard heard it first. He always was the lightest sleeper of the two. He sat up gently and looked around, careful not to wake up Frank unless necessary. Up at the top of the staircase was a small figure, just peeking out from the shadows. The figure hopped down one step. And then another.

“Bandit? What’s wrong, sweetie?” Gerard asked as she hopped down the stairs and ran to him.

“I can’t sweep.” It took him a moment to realize she meant sleep. 

“Would you like to sleep down here with us?” he offered. She nodded, rubbing her eyes. “Okay, hop up here.” Bandit climbed onto the couch and laid down in between the two of them. Gerard was vaguely aware that Frank was awake, but not for long as he was pretty tired on his own. Then, being the last thing he heard that night, Frank spoke up.

“We need a bigger couch.” Gerard smiled.


End file.
